Environment
Map of an area scanned by SAR technology

Mars technologies comes to Michigan to find water leaks

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WATER LEAKS: The Great Lakes Water Authority and an Israeli company are using technology developed to find water on Mars to detect costly leaks in public water systems. The authority provides water to parts or all of Wayne, Monroe, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair, Genesee, Lapeer and Washtenaw counties. Detroit, Livonia, Pontiac, Redford Township and Walled Lake are participating in the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) project. By Vladislava Sukjanovskaya. FOR DETROIT, PLANET DETROIT, MONROE AND ALL POINTS.

Environment
Hand removal of frog-bit.

New strategy to combat exotic water plants

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EXOTIC WATER PLANTS: The Army Corps of Engineers hopes a new grant strategy will help combat the invasive European frog-bit and its unwelcome water soldier relative that are spreading in the Great Lakes and inland waters. Frog-bit has been found in 12 Michigan counties, including Alpena, Chippewa, Monroe, Wayne, Montmorency, Kent and Macomb. Experts from Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council in Petoskey, Huron Pines in Gaylord and the Department of Great Lakes, Environment and Energy discuss. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR ALPENA, WKTV, MONTMORENCY, MONROE, DETROIT, PLANET DETROIT, SAULT STE. MARIE, ALCONA AND ALL POINTS.

Diversity Issues

Lead lines are gone but water remains luxury in Benton Harbor

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BENTON HARBOR WATER: Lead lines are gone, but clean water remains a luxury in Benton Harbor, where residents have been inundated with challenges facing their water system for years: Lead in pipes. Ineffective corrosion treatment. Threats of water shut-offs. Some relief is at hand, now that two years of construction and $45 million in federal aid have made it possible to replace most of the city’s lead lines. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR ALL POINTS.

Environment
Erin Ford, the conservation manager at Audubon Great Lakes, bands chicks while their mother sits on the head of her assistant, Jenni Fuller, at Wigwam Bay State Wildlife Area in Michigan.

Michigan’s list of birds at risk updated first time since 2009

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BIRDS AT RISK: Michigan officials recently took six birds off of the states’ endangered and threatened species list. But it added seven other species. The last time the list was updated was in 2009. We talk to a conservation manager for the Audubon Society and a state endangered species specialist. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR ALPENA, BAY MILLS, CHEBOYGAN, LEELANAU, OCEANA, PETOSKEY, HARBOR SPRINGS, LUDINGTON, HOLLAND, MARQUETTE, IRON MOUNTAIN, ST. IGNACE, SAULT STE. MARIE, TRAVERSE CITY AND ALL POINTS.

Arts & Entertainment

New book for tree lovers is rooted in memory

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TREE LOVERS BOOK: Trees take root in the life of Maureen Dunphy, a writing coach from Royal Oak and author of the new collection of essays, “Divining, A Memoir in Trees” The author explains the origins of the book and her way of looking at trees through memories.References to Hartwick Pines State Park, Pinkney and MSU. By Vadislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR PLANET DETROIT, DETROIT, CRAWFORD COUNTY AND ALL POINTS.

Environment
These porcelain license plates were retrieved from the Grand River in Lansing.

Michigan’s Magnet Man attracts river trash

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MAGNET MAN: Magnet fishing is catching on as a little-recognized recreational opportunity and we talk to practitioners, including an MSU student who talk about some of the weird things they retrieve, from abandoned laptops to historic condom cases to guns to bikes galore. They also explain the environmental benefits of removing contaminated material from Michigan rivers, including the Cass, Rouge, Detroit and Red Cedar, as well as rivers in Grand Rapids, Lansing, Flint, Saginaw, Battle Creek and Kalamazoo and in Lake Erie. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR WKTV, PLANET DETROIT, LANSING CITY PULSE, MONROE, DETROIT AND ALL POINTS.

Business & Economy
This is what households with different incomes pay for water bills under Detroit’s Lifeline Plan.

Detroiters offered more gallons of water under discount program

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DISCOUNTED WATER: To help prevent water shut-offs for nonpayment, low-income Detroit households are now entitled to more free water each month. We talk to the Wayne Metropolitan Action Agency, Water & Sewerage Department and Detroiters Working for Environmental Justice. Senators, including ones from Metro Detroit, Bay City, Ann Arbor and Flint, are sponsoring a bill to recognize water as a basic human right. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR DETROIT, PLANET DETROIT, MIDLAND AND ALL POINTS.

Agriculture
Community members work on a spring planting project at a community garden in the University Avenue Corridor in Flint.

Gardening with a whole community could reduce violent crimes in neighborhoods, study says

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GREEN AGAINST CRIME: Community engagement in maintaining and mowing vacant city lots can contribute to lower violent crime rates,says a new study by researchers from U of M, the CDC and other institutions. Such community involvement is underway in Flint through the city’s Clean and Green program. We talk to researchers and the Genesee County Land Bank Authority. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR DETROIT, LANSING CITY PULSE AND ALL POINTS.

Arts & Entertainment
Cover of “Half Wild: People, Dogs and Environmental Policy.”

New book connects the environment with a love of dogs

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HALF WILD: Longtime environmental policy expert Dave Dempsey of Traverse City and now a senior advisor at FLOW (For Love of Waters) talks about his new book, “Half Wild: People, Dogs and Environmental Policy.” It’s an overview of his career, wins and mistakes interspersed with stories about dogs he’s owned. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR TRAVERSE CITY, LEELANAU AND ALL POINTS.

Business & Economy
Pit bull at a mobile clinic in Detroit.

Vet care needed for pets of homeless owners

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PETS OF HOMELESS: Homeless pet owners need vet care and food for their animals, and some nonprofits are stepping in with assistance. We hear from the Humane Society of Huron Valley and Shelter Association of Washtenaw County and see a Street Dog Coalition free clinic in Detroit. By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya. FOR DETROIT AND ALL POINTS.